Mendoza!

Museum about the foundation of Mendoza

Hello everybody, I hope all of you in New England survived winter storm Nemo! While many of you were trudging through the snow, we in Argentina spent the weekend in the city of Mendoza and the surrounding area. Like Buenos Aires, Mendoza is a fair ways away from Córdoba, but in the opposite direction, near the Chilean border in the foothills of the Andes. We left from Córdoba Friday evening by bus, and arrived in Mendoza Saturday morning at about 8 am or so, after a 10 or 11 hour bus ride. One of the most obvious differences between Mendoza and Córdoba is the existence of actual trees and vegetation in Mendoza. Córdoba has some trees scattered around the city, but by and large, the streets are devoid of any sort of greenery. In contrast, Mendoza had streets that were lined with tall trees, which accomplished the dual tasks of making the city look nicer and making it feel cooler. The first thing we did Saturday morning after checking into our hotel was go to a museum that focused on the foundation of Mendoza. Apparently Mendoza was struck by a serious earthquake in the 1800s, and they had to rebuild much of the city. When the did so, they moved the city center from its original spot, so this museum was located at the original founding area and had exhibits describing the history of the city.

Me, next to a memorial statue at the
top of the hill in the park we went to.

After that, we headed into a large park in Mendoza, which looked like it was the rough equivalent of a state park in the United States. In this park, there were apparently a number of different buildings and institutions, but what I really enjoyed was the large expanse of forest/woods that we drove through. I enjoy being in nature, and Córdoba doesn't really have much to offer in that regard, and getting out of the city takes a good deal of planning. We drove up this large hill in the park where we were able to take in some very nice views of the surrounding area, until we eventually arrived at the top, which offered some great views in all directions, and the feeling of being at least sort of out of the city. After driving back into the city center for lunch, we had a little down time before heading out to a winery located outside the city. 

View from the top. Very nice.

Wines for tasting

From there, we started one of the more interesting and unusual activities we've done on this trip. We took a tour of the winery and tasted some wine before getting on bicycles and biking en masse to another winery, which was about 30 minutes away. There, we took another tour in which we noted some of the differences from the previous winery, and again tasted a couple more varieties of wine. We get on our bikes once more and rode to another winery (the final one) where the tour was basically non-existent; we walked around the grounds for about a half hour tasting grapes and such before going into a formal wine-tasting event. Overall, it was a very fun and enjoyable experience, despite the fact that I don't like wine all that much. Even though I'm still not a huge fan of it, I was able to learn a lot more about it, and I did begin to make some distinctions in taste between the different wines.

Grapes on grapes on grapes.

After that, we headed back to the hotel and enjoyed some nap and relaxation time (or at least I did, because I hadn't slept that well on the bus) before heading out to dinner. All the girls opted to go to a relatively fancy restaurant a little ways away from the hotel, while the guys opted to go to a taco bar located a few blocks from the restaurant. The taco bar was a bit of a risky proposition, since we didn't know how good it would be, but it ended up being a fantastic choice, because the food and atmosphere were absolutely fantastic. The restaurant had a relaxed and fun vibe to it, and the food was delicious and cheap. We all hung out there for quite a while before finally heading back to the hotel, talking for a while, and eventually going to bed. Earlier in the day, at lunch, the guide who had come with us asked us what we all wanted to do on Sunday, our free day. There were several options presented to us if we wanted them, for which we would have to pay, including rafting, horseback riding, and paragliding. We could forego all those options if we wanted, but those all seemed pretty fun, so everyone opted for one of those options. Eventually, the group split into those who would go horseback riding and those who would go paragliding. I've been horseback riding before, and it was enjoyable, and I knew the scenery would most likely be fantastic. However, paragliding seemed like a once in a lifetime opportunity, so I joined the others and signed up for that. So going to bed Saturday night, we were all discussing what paragliding would bring, and what we should expect.

The next morning, we were able to sleep in, because the paragliding trip didn't begin until the afternoon. We all got a good night's sleep and then around 8 of us picked a spot for lunch. The food was good, but the service was rather slow, and there was some confusion with paying the bill, which leads me to a point I've been thinking about for a while now; Argentina has a very cash-based economy, but nobody ever has change at restaurants or businesses. The exchange rate is roughly 5 Argentinian pesos for $1, so unsurprisingly, banks dispense 100-peso notes from ATMs, as they are roughly equivalent to $20 bills. However, people rarely have change if you try to pay for anything with a 100-peso note, which seems ridiculous. For example, my meal at lunch was 55 pesos, which is roughly $11. I tried to pay with a 100-peso note, but I was told that they did not have change. In the U.S. you can pay for almost anything with a $20 bill and receive change easily, especially if you're trying to pay for something over $10. However, nobody ever seems to have these small bills for change, which is frustrating and strange, because everybody pays cash all the time, and banks dispense 100-peso notes. How can any transactions be completed in these situations? Well for us, it was with difficulty, after people put money in and traded bills to get proper change. I'm not an economist, but I'll bet that this inability to properly deal with cash is one of the reasons that the Argentinian economy has had significant struggles in recent years.

On our way to paragliding

At around 3pm on Sunday afternoon, the group going paragliding (12 of us in total) met in the lobby and were picked up by the paragliding company, and driven to their operating base. Their base is located in the foothills of some very significant peaks, and was a pretty relaxed and mellow operation, reminiscent of surfer culture. I think many of the adrenaline-seeking sports have a similarly laid-back culture. After everyone arrived at the base, we were driven in groups of four to the launch spot (one group at a time), located higher up in the mountains. I and the three other guys in the group volunteered to go first, so we were driven up a rocky dirt road in the mountains to the launch spot. The drive up was almost as exhilarating as the paragliding itself (well maybe not, but it was interesting) because it was a narrow mountain road with a lot of switchbacks and some incredible views. 

Me ready to go!

Bird's eye view - except we were
higher than the birds!

Eventually, we arrived at the launch spot, located on a plateau/peak area, more than a mile above sea level. We were partnered up with one of the professionals, because it was a two-person operation. In reality, we were just along for the ride while the professional steered and controlled the whole apparatus. We got harnessed up and put on our helmets, and then one by one, we went off. To initiate take-off, they got the sail off the ground, and then the two people took off running towards the edge of the plateau. It wasn't really a cliff so much as a steep incline, so at the point where you would normally stumble forward and fall because of the slope and your momentum, we were simply lifted up into the air and then we were flying! 

The apparatus is really like a giant sail, so we weren't going all that fast up in the air, but rather just sort of sailing and gliding along. It was a strangely calm experience, being up so high in the air and just looking at everything floating down below you. I took the option of paying a little extra to have a camera-on-a-stick gadget, which you could hold out in front of you and then use a button at the bottom of the pole to take a picture. I didn't want to risk taking my camera out in the air, so that option made the most sense. And as a result, I got some really awesome photos! The total flight time lasted about 15-20 minutes before we coasted into a surprisingly smooth landing right near the base where we drove off from. 

When we landed, there was an incredible feeling of giddiness and excitement, which I suppose might have been the adrenaline. Most of the guys landed within a couple minutes of each other, so then we immediately ran back up to where the rest of the group was waiting and told them how great it was. We then had a long wait while the other two groups of four went up and we waited for them to come back down, but it was alright because the weather was nice, and it was relaxing to just sit and chat and then watch the others as they sailed in. And as an extra bonus, there was a ridiculously cute puppy running around the area as well!

Very cute puppy

We finally drove back to the city around 8pm (still very light out) and then met our professor and guide and went to a buffet at a restaurant near the hotel. The food at the buffet was varied and delicious, and I went to town on everything (well, most things at least) before finally leaving and feeling very satisfied. We then went back to the hotel where we hung out, watched the Grammys, and talked to the other group about their adventures on horseback. All in all, it was an excellent day, and I went to bed very tired and very satisfied. Monday morning, we were able to sleep in once more before grabbing breakfast and leaving from the hotel at 11am for our 12pm bus departure. The bus ride home was once again very long, but it was well worth it, given all our fantastic adventures in Mendoza this weekend.

This was definitely one of the most fun weekends I've had in Argentina, and probably ever in my life as well. We're now halfway through the term, and it's been great. There are apparently some other students arriving from North Dakota who are using the same general program as us so I guess we might see them around when we go to classes (it's really been our own personal wing of the building thus far). If so, I'm sure we'll all be glad to pass on our knowledge about Córdoba and Argentina in general, since we've certainly gained a while lot of knowledge in our short time here. Hope everybody's well back in the U.S. and thanks for reading!